Pros of small ID bands ... faster band contraction due to smaller outside diameter and thus faster shaft velocity. Less mass of bands for same band load and thus less recoil for equivalent power. Easier to load than equivalent powered large ID bands and thus can get higher band stretch and thus longer distance for band contraction which gives higher velocities. Less chance of water intrusion inside the bands (water intrusion hurts performance dramatically). Also small ID bands have less bulk when bands are sitting side by side ... so you have a better chance of getting a clear sight picture as the bands have more space to lie side by side. For equivalent power, the price of small ID bands are also cheaper and use up less volume to store.

Cons ... the smaller ID bands are slightly harder to insert wishbones ... but with the right protocol I find this to be a non issue.

I really think that for spearfishing, the small ID bands are a no brainer. I don't know anyone that has tried them and not stuck with them.

Try small needle nose and be liberal with silicone spray. You don't need near the size knot that you would on regular I.D bands. What do you guys think about 14-14.5mm holding energy for less amount of time than 16mm? Lost a really good fish had me confused when it should've knocked him right through. 160-190lb yft that sank my 3atm 60+ft before I hit the surface. Tore out seconds later, was a good holding shot and all terminal tackle was fine. BTW I was using the Benthic 1.7mm when I shot him with figure 8 follow through and it held up great. Would prefer the 1.9 but had to take some reel line off to use after running out of shooting line on a trip

Inserting a small star screwdriver or bit of rod thru the dyneema hole gives you a nice right angle brace to push the insert into the smallest ID hole. Bit of silicone or soap to ensure inside of the rubber doesnt get damaged.

To be honest since i started using the stainless inserts i havent had a pop or breakage, they make life easy

I find Primeline's 9/16" tied at 370% great, tho i dont use rollers.
I buy from OBD in Aust, Spearitco from US
Lots here on SB re band diameter vs shaft size, Primeline varies by batch in actual diameter, smaller stuff for 7mm shafts, larger on 8mm.
Chasing some 14.7mm or 14.8mm to power big shaft on my new build Albacore clone

Try small needle nose and be liberal with silicone spray. You don't need near the size knot that you would on regular I.D bands. What do you guys think about 14-14.5mm holding energy for less amount of time than 16mm? Lost a really good fish had me confused when it should've knocked him right through. 160-190lb yft that sank my 3atm 60+ft before I hit the surface. Tore out seconds later, was a good holding shot and all terminal tackle was fine. BTW I was using the Benthic 1.7mm when I shot him with figure 8 follow through and it held up great. Would prefer the 1.9 but had to take some reel line off to use after running out of shooting line on a trip

A big fish can tear out even though you have a perfect shot, it just happens sometimes. I find that slip tips are best for open water, but I still can't get myself to use them as where I hunt a lot of times I have to take shots in rocks. I like the staggered double floppered shaft idea, but for Wahoo that won't work and a large Wahoo will tear out more times than not.

I just came from a trip where I was using the 1.2mm cable and on two occasions it snapped with only 2 x 14.5mm bands ... but had about 142cm band stretch ... maybe that is too much for the 1.2 cable. It was catching somewhere on the muzzle and was snapping. In one case I shot a fish and stoned it ... only to see the shaft and fish both land deep on the bottom. I had to do an anxiety filled deep drop to recover the shaft and fish and fortunately managed to retrieve both. Otherwise the 1.2mm cable was very strong when it did not snap at the muzzle ... but for now that is out for me until I figure out why the cable is snapping. The 1.7mm stiff spectra might be a good choice ... the 1.9mm just has too much shaft drop and slows down the shaft too much. The 1.4mm coated cable was an absolute winner with an 8.5mm shaft and 3 x 14.6mm bands ... flat flat shooting and incredible power and accuracy! I just couldn't miss anything with that setup.

With regards to using small ID bands ... a little silicone lube (same as used for O rings) on the insert and it is a piece of cake to put it in. Also the silicone lube helps seal water out once you put the constrictor knot on the band. The SS inserts and the Plastic inserts are perfect for small ID bands.

I took 2 Hero 5 cameras but the results were a disaster. I have almost zero footage on probably one of the best spearfishing days I have ever had. Caught YFT, Dogtooth, GT and large Trevale and coral trout in one area in about 3 or 4 hours. I really miss my GoPro Hero 3+ which had a battery that could stay on for 6 hours +. With the Hero 5 I had to keep turning the camera on and off as battery life was like an hour. And it is really difficult to confirm when the camera is on and off and you end up spending way too much time fiddling with the camera rather than spearfishing. With my Hero 3+ with the big Wasabi battery I would just turn it on and forget about the camera and spearfish.

I took 2 Hero 5 cameras but the results were a disaster. I have almost zero footage on probably one of the best spearfishing days I have ever had. Caught YFT, Dogtooth, GT and large Trevale and coral trout in one area in about 3 or 4 hours. I really miss my GoPro Hero 3+ which had a battery that could stay on for 6 hours +. With the Hero 5 I had to keep turning the camera on and off as battery life was like an hour. And it is really difficult to confirm when the camera is on and off and you end up spending way too much time fiddling with the camera rather than spearfishing. With my Hero 3+ with the big Wasabi battery I would just turn it on and forget about the camera and spearfish.

Majd, I always keep an acrylic mirror with me. If you have problems with sharks slide it in your wetsuit wrist. Pull it out to check if your camera is on then slide it back in. If it isn't sharky, send some bungee cord through a few holes in the mirror and wear it on your wrist/hand. Makes checking your camera way easier. Just look to see if the red light is on, and go.

I have a friend who had to get many stitches from a barracuda attack to his hand and he had something much less shinier than a mirror. I have seen those mirrors sold by Mako and thought about getting them quite a few times. But I just don't feel comfortable using them as I hunt areas with a lot of barracuda. I know you can hide it but I don't trust myself to do that all the time. I just got a Hero 4 extended camera by battery by Re-Fuel and it is supposed to give a 6 hour + battery life plus the battery already in the Hero 4. I bought a Hero 4 black just for that battery. What you have to be really careful of is water flooding your housing ... so you should always silicone grease the seals. But the push button seal is impossible to grease ... so best is to change your underwater housing every year or so. My brother also flooded his Hero 4 on this trip ... and I have 4 flooded cameras so far. With the Hero 5 things are much better as even if the case floods your camera is waterproof to a good depth ... so probably no damage and you just change the case. The Hero 5 takes amazing video ... but for spearfishing you just absolutely need a long battery life. I haven't seen a good extended battery for the Hero 5 so hopefully one will come along. I actually thought about going for another Hero 3+ and just slapping the big Wasabi extended battery, but I then saw this Hero 4 battery. For spearfishing you only need about 60 fps and 1080p ... the 120 fps would be great for slow motion ... but it heats up the camera too much and eats up way too much battery.